A La Nina event, associated with cooler temperatures and increased rainfall, was declared in 2020-21, 2021-22 and 2022-23.

Orange wasn't spared the downpour that hit most of eastern Australia with 2021 and 2022 some of the city's wettest years on record.

But with El Nino now on the horizon, Orange can expect to see clearer skies as Charles Sturt University professor and climatology expert Andrew Hall explains.

"El Nino usually for eastern parts of Australia will bring drier weather," he told the Daily.

"There's less moisture being evaporated into the atmosphere and that is usually because the oceans are a bit cooler.

"So it does affect parts of eastern Australia especially central and northern parts of NSW.

"It is generally a little bit warmer during El Nino as well and that's because there is less cloud about, so the sun gets through a bit more.

"You get cooler night time temperatures as well though because you have the open atmosphere. But on the whole yes you tend to get warmer temperatures."

With increased variability of El Nino predicted, it's worth taking a look some of the stronger effects the weather pattern has had down the years.

The most recent major El Nino event took place between 2014-16 with prolonged heatwaves during Autumn 2016. The Bureau said the lack of cloud cover and delayed monsoon season combined to record "the worst coral bleaching event on record for the Great Barrier Reef."

Other strong El Nino events occurred in 2006-07, 2002-03 and 1982-83.

Stuck in the middle of the Millennium Drought, 2006 was a particularly bad year with Orange recording a measly 494.2 millimetres of rain compared to the average of 873.1mm.

The mean maximum temperature of 19.6 degrees was also higher than the annual mean of 18.4 degrees.

1982 was also a grim outing for the colour city. Just 324mm fell with maximum temperatures averaging 18.9 degrees.

1911 to 1915 saw three consecutive El Nino events recorded. Temperature records for Orange don't stretch back that far however 1912 saw just 568mm fall.

There is no way of knowing what the next El Nino will bring but after three years of heavy rainfall it is likely drier conditions are on the horizon but for how long only time will tell.

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